The invention relates to a gear activated paper tissue roll holder which functions without the use of a spindle.
Most paper tissue roll holders prior to this invention have employed a spindle to hold the tissue roll in place. Some spindles are detachable, can come apart and are difficult to use for people with disabilities, including arthritis. The spindles actually are not needed, since support plugs engaging in each end of the tissue core can be sufficient for holding a tissue roll in place, as is well known. Further, spindles can be removed and lost, another disadvantage for the hotel industry.
Several prior art paper tissue roll holders have offered an alternative to the use of a spindle. Some have claimed to be dual retractable, yet require two hands to operate; some have one frame which remains stationary as another frame is pulled out to the side, requiring off-center loading, followed by shifting the tissue roll to the side.
A principal object of the present invention is to provide a tissue holder which can be center loaded, more quickly and easily than in the prior art, with only one hand needed to manipulate the holder.
In accordance with this invention, a paper tissue roll holder is easily operated with one hand. The holder device has a mechanical linkage such that when one arm of the holder is pulled outwardly, the other is moved outwardly in the opposite direction. Preferably a knob is provided on the outside of one arm of the tissue roll holder for gripping by the user. Each arm is connected to a back portion comprising a frame or bracket which extends at about right angles from the back end of the arm and which is generally parallel to the wall on which the unit is to be mounted. In one embodiment each of these back frames has a gear rack, and each gear rack engages with a gear positioned between the two racks and mounted for rotation in the unit""s housing. This causes motion of-the one arm to be transferred to opposing motion of the opposite arm. In another embodiment, the opposing motion of the two arms is achieved with two enmeshed gears, each connected to a pivotal lever that engages with one of the slidable frames.